Nice Wings
Josh Reddick has worn four uniforms this year, as he’s suited up for Portland, Pawtucket, Boston, and the cast of the “Wizard of Oz.”
That’s right. In case you missed it, when the Red Sox left town for their final road trip of the regular season, they hazed the rookies by forcing them to dress up as characters from the movie (you can see more here).
“I was a blue fairy,” Reddick told me. “The theme was ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and I was the good witch. It was pretty funny – I made it look good I think. The worst was definitely Tazawa. He was Dorothy and he was a little too scary in that outfit because it fit him too well.”
It’s been quite a year for the 22-year-old outfielder from Georgia who is likely to be on Pawtucket’s opening day roster next season.
Reddick got off to a blazing start for Double-A Portland this year as he hit four home runs in his first five games. After missing all of May with an oblique strain, Josh was hitting .277 with 13 HR in 63 games when he leapfrogged Pawtucket and went directly from Portland to Boston on July 31st. After playing in nine games for the Red Sox, Reddick finally joined the PawSox on August 16th and struggled in his first stint at the Triple-A level, batting .127 (9-for-71) in 18 games.
(photo courtesy of Kelly O’Connor)
But the Red Sox are obviously high on his potential and gave Josh a September call-up, allowing him to experience a major league pennant chase for the first time.
“Basically I’m here to learn as much as I can for next season and the seasons to follow,” Reddick said. “The biggest thing I’ve learned is that the hitters don’t give away any at-bats. These guys have more than 600 at-bats a year and they don’t give one away so every at-bat is important for them. That’s something I need to carry into my game next year, and that will hopefully help me get back here next year.”
(I hope he realizes that unless he a full year of major league service time, he may have to dress up again next September)
In the meantime, Reddick is looking forward to taking a little break.
“I’m just going to go home and hang around with family and friends for awhile,” Josh said. “I’m planning on a big long camping and fishing trip for me and my cousin and that’s about it.”
Heard It From Hoard 
It’s hard to see in that photo, but I thought Josh’s outfit was very flattering to his arms and shoulders. With luck he’ll get something similarly flattering next year…
I’m glad he’s getting some major league experience before his offseason–it always seems to work out well when a player gets a taste of what he’s going to be fighting for.
Kelly